Edwin r



(No Model.)

E. R. HEARN.

MACHINE FOR ATTAGHING TAGS AND LABELS TO vPLUG TOBACCO.

No. 253,284. Patented Feb. 7,1882.

il lo A A l 1mm/v Anw A l il ll UNTTBD STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWINT 1t. IIEAllN, OF -JERSEY CITY, NElV JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO P. LORIE-LARD S5 CO., OF SAME PLACE.

MACHINE'FOR ATTACHING TAGS AND LABELS T0 PLUG-TOBACCO.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 253,284, dated February'7, 1882.

Application tiled August 9, 1831. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.: Y

Beit known that I, EDWIN R. HEARN, ot' JerseyGity,in the county ofHudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and 5 usefulImprovements relating to Machines for Attaching Tags and Labels toPlug-Tobacco, of which the following is a specification.

Myimproved machine allows the attachment of tin tags and strips ot'paper, commonly used io with them, to plugs of tobacco with greatrapidity and perfection.

I employ a platform provided with suitable gages, upon which the plugsof tobacco are successivel y placed to receive the tin 'tags and thepaper. The platform is loosely formed with a longslot, in which isinclosed a separate strip of wood or other suitable material, withapertures of the same shape as the tags and but little larger,into whichapertures a series of vertical zo posts are received from below. Y Whenthe machineisidle theupperends of the posts a-realittlelower than theloose strip, and theloose strip is a little lower than the upper surfaceof the platform. The tags are placed upon the upper end surfaces oftheposts, with the prongs projecting upward. The strips ofpaper are placedupon the loose strip with what is to be its exterior face downward,being kept in position by the fact that .the edges of the platform 3owhich surround it are higher thanthe strip on which itrests, and theplug of tobacco is placed upon the platform. The machine is operated tobring the tops of the posts and the loose piece flush with each otherand with the surfaces of the platform, the tobacco being held firmly incontact therewith. By this means the claws of the tags are pressedthrough the paper into the tobacco, and the paper, being previouslyprepared on the upper face with 4o gum or paste, is strongly cemented tothe tobacco.

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification, andrepresent the first form in which I reduced the invention to practice.

Figure l is a front view, and Fig. 2 a side view, of the entiremachine.- The remaining figures represent portions on a larger scale.Fig. 3 is a front view, partly in section, on the line S S in Fig.2.This shows the parts of the 5o machine in the same position as before,but

with the tags, paper, and tobacco in position readyr for the machine tooperate. Fig. 4 is a vertical section o n the lineTTin Fig. 3. Thisshows the condition after the machine has operated and has raised theposts and loose strip flush with the platform, fixing the tags and thepaper or label firmly to the tobacco.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in thefigures.

A is the fixed frame-work, certain parts be- 6o ing designated by theadditional marks A A2, Ste., when necessary.

A and A2 are respectively the front andl back portions of the platform,on which the plugs of tobacco are successively placed to receive thetags and strip of paper.

G G, &'c.,areaseries of vertical posts placed equidistant from eachother and having their upper ends plane and even with each other. Theyaremounted in the space between the two 7o portions A and A2 of theplatform, and are all connected to a single stoutcross-bar,G,which isguided by suitable supports in the fixed frame-work, and is operated bya pitman, G2, connected to a treadle, W, turning on a fixed ccnter,w,belo\v,and operated in one direction by a spring, X. The action of theattendant on the free end of the trearlle depresses that end, whenrequired, and raises the pitman G2, and with it the cross-har G andposts G.

E is a strip of hard wood or other suitable material loosely inclosed ina. slot in the platform A A2, and having a series of equidistantperforations or apertures, f, corresponding to the posts G. Theseaperturesf, and the posts G which stand therein, are spaced according tothe desired size of the subdivisions of the plugtobacco. 0n the sinkingof the posts the strip E descends a little lower than the platform andrests on stops A5, formed by slight inter- 9o nal shoulders in the fixedwork at the sides of the machine. This brings the upper surface of thestrip E a little lower than the upper surface of the platform A A2, sothat on a strip of paper being laid on E in its depressed position thepaper will be confined laterally by the higher surfaces adjoining.

N N are gages adjusted on the back portion,

A2, of the platform by means of screws 0 and nuts P, standing in slotstherein. A further 'roo gage, L, is held on the platform by a screw,

M, inserted into one of the standards or fixed uprights, A3. The gagesNcan be so adj usted that the longitudinal center line of a piece ofplug-tobacco which is pressed from the front against these gages will beexactly over the longitudinal center lille of the strip E-that is tosay, if it is adjusted for a piece of tobacco of a certain width, allthe pieces of the same width need only be placed against the. gage N,and their longitudinal central line will coincide with that of theperforated strip E A4 is a stout cross-bar, mortised to receive theposts or uprights A3, and secured thereto at adjustable heights by stoutscrews extending through the bar A4 and the posts A3, as shown. This barA4 serves as an abutment to press upon the upper surface of the tobacco,and resist the rise thereof when the latter is acted on from below bythe elevation of the posts G and strip E.

Q represents the piece of plug-tobacco to which the tin tags T are to beattached, and It a strip of paper or other suitable material which is tobe secured on the piece of tobacco with thetin tags T.

The tin tags may be round,square, orin any other desired shape, theaperturesj' in the piece E being correspondingly shaped. Each tag T isprovided with two or more upturned prongs or jaws, t.

Theoperation is as follows: The tin tags are passed into the recessesformed by the apertures fand rested on the tops of the posts G, (fillingpart of these apertures,) with the prongs extending upward. A strip, R,of gilt or other suitable paper, is then placed upon the perforatedstrip E, with what is to be the face side downward, and the upper sideprepared with gum-arabic or other suitable adhesive material. A piece ofplugtobacco, Q, is placed on the strip E and rested against the backgages, N, and end gage, L. On operating the treadle the rise of theposts G forces the prongs t through the strip of paper R into thetobacco and presses firmly upward against the tobacco. The strip E beingalso raised, so soon as the upper ends of the posts G are fiushtherewith, also presses the whole of the paper R firmly against thetobacco. The rise of the tobacco in obedience to this force is arrestedby the cross-bar A4, which forms a firm abutment therefor, and the tagsand the paper are instantly and firmly united to the tobacco. On theoperating of the vtreadle W the cross-bar G rises a little distancewithout lifting anything but the posts G. This motion brings the top ofthe posts up even or ush with the top of the strip E. Then the cross-barG strikes fairly against the Lbottom of the strip E and lifts alltogether. 4

Modifications may be made in many of the details. I can increase ordiminish the number of the apertures f and of the posts G. Theabutment-piece A4 may for many uses be permanently attached in a givenposition and made to serve for all the thicknesses of tobacco by simplyoperating the treadle W to a greater or less extent. The upper surfaceof the strip E may be faced with rubber, felt, or analogous yieldingmaterial, if desired, in order to press the paperR more uniformlyagainst irregularlysurfaced or rough-and-ready tobacco.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a tobacco-tagging machine, a series ofequidistant posts, G, standing loosely within corresponding holes in asingle continuous piece, serving as a platform, and serving by relativechanges of position first to present a series of cavities by holding theends of the posts lower than the surrounding piece, to receive the tagsT t upon the tops of the posts, and then to bring the working surfacesflush with each other to attach the tags to the tobacco, and to engagethem firmly therewith, as herein specified.

2. In a tobacco tagging and labeling machine, the platform A A2,independently-movable strip E, inclosed loosely therein,stops A5, andposts G, standing in perforations in the strip, combined and arranged asshown, with provisions for moving one relatively to the other, so thatthe posts, strip, and. platform will all stand at different levels toreceive the tags and paper, and afterward be all brought to the samelevel and into firm contact with the face of a tobacco-plug, and imitetherewith the tags T t and paper R, all substantially as specified.

3. In a tobacco-tagging machine, a series of equidistantposts rigid withand arranged vertically upon a bar, G, which is forced to reciprocate inguides by means of pitman and pedallever connections, combined with aplatform having a series of holes, in which the posts operate loosely,in such a manner that the upstroke brings the upper ends of the postsflush with the upper face of said platform, and the receding strokeaffords recesses, as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, at New York city, NewYork, this 8th day of August, 1881, in the presence of two subscribingwitnesses.

EDWIN R. HEARN.

Witnesses:

CHARLES C. STETsoN, WILLIAM C. DEY.

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